Here comes the sun

After several cloudy mostly sun-free days I figure seeing Fitz Roy is not in the cards so I decide to head south for El Calafate. I get the bike packed down and I notice the first sun beams breaking through the thinning clouds overhead. Perhaps I will get a last minute reprieve. El Calafate is a short day from El Chalten so I hang out to see what unfolds. After a couple hours of varying degrees of partial sunshine my patience wanes and I snap a few shots as I leave the city.

A tailwind accompanies me as I ride along Lago Viedma and I run over 100 mph with the throttle barely open in a virtually noise free cocoon of music and Patagonian scenery.

El Calafate is a big time tourist town and I am thankful I am here in the off-season. The town is quiet and I enjoy my stay but imagine I would hate it during tourist season. The big attraction in El Calafate is Perito Moreno, one of a dwindling number of glaciers that is still growing. The ride from El Calafate is short and scenic and the cross winds off Lago Argentino are fierce but that’s to be expected.

To see Perito Moerno in person is a memorable experience and worth contending with the droves of tourists though I recommend the off-season. A highlight is to hear the ice expand and crack just before it falls into the water and makes an enormous splash. I heard the first splash of a BIG piece of ice as I was walking down the mirador but did not see it. I saw a second very large piece of ice fracture and slide off into the water but did not have my camera at the ready. I am thankful I got to see it though. It’s tough to wrap your head around the scale unless you’ve seen it live.

I take a boat tour which I recommend at the least. Ideally you want to hike the glacier, I did not and regret the decision in retrospect. Sunshine brings out the blue hues of the ice and make for some stunning photography but I had to settle for the lighting from a mostly cloudy day.